Sunday: Morning Prayer

ABOUTTODAY

We are currently in the season of Lent, which is the traditional 40 days of prayer, fasting, reflection and repentance that precedes the great Easter celebrations. Just as Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness learning to overcome the Enemy, so we set this time aside for spiritual warfare and renewal. It is common during this time to imitate the simplicity of Jesus in the wilderness by abstaining from rich foods and strong drink during this season, and to devote extra time to the practice of the spiritual disciplines. The daily intercessions throughout the entire Lenten season reflect this focus, and drill deeply into our selfish attitudes and sinful actions.

CALL TO WORSHIP

Reader:
Lord, Open my lips.All:And my mouth will give you praise.

Reader:Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. All:As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen

INVITATORY PSALM:

Psalm 100 (Jubilate Deo)

All:

A Song of Praise for the Lord’s Faithfulness to His PeopleA Psalm of Thanksgiving.

Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!Serve the Lord with gladness;Come before His presence with singing.Know that the Lord, He is God;It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,And into His courts with praise.Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.For the Lord is good;His mercy is everlasting,And His truth endures to all generations.

All:Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen

MORNING PSALM

Psalm 119:65-72

ט Teth

You have dealt well with Your servant,O Lord, according to Your word.Teach me good judgment and knowledge,For I believe Your commandments.Before I was afflicted I went astray,But now I keep Your word.You are good, and do good;Teach me Your statutes.The proud have forged a lie against me,But I will keep Your precepts with my whole heart.Their heart is as fat as grease,But I delight in Your law.It is good for me that I have been afflicted,That I may learn Your statutes.The law of Your mouth is better to meThan thousands of coins of gold and silver.

All:Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen

WORSHIP

All:
(A time of worship and thanksgiving, led or spontaneous. Alternatively a devotional song may be played and listened to.)

PRAYER & INTERCESSION

Reader:Let us pray for the day and its tasks, for the church and her life, and for the world and its needs.

(You may use these prayers as written or use them as ‘prayer pointers’ for your own spontaneous petitions.

Personal Requests

Almighty God, we commit this Lenten season into your hands. Purge us and we shall be clean. Wash us and we shall be whiter than snow. May this season of pruning remove from us all that offends your Holiness and renew in us all that pleases your Spirit. – Lord, have mercy…

Remove from us our heart of stone, O God, and create in us a heart of flesh. – Lord, have mercy…

Remove from our lives all trace of wrongdoing. Let sin no longer divide what grace has united. – Lord, have mercy…

Family & Friends

Heavenly Father we stand as representatives of our families. Open the windows of heaven above them and let your Spirit lead them to the ark of your salvation. Forgive our poor witness and fearful words and make us, once again, the light of the world. – Lord, have mercy…

For allowing discord to remain where peace can be found. – Lord, have mercy…

For taking the easy option when the hard road calls, and choosing the praise of men over the purposes of God for our family. – Lord, have mercy…

Forgive us every failure of fellowship, every lapse of love and every of parting of friendship. – Lord, have mercy…

The Church

Lord Jesus, you spent 40 days in the wilderness to prepare for your ministry to us. Accept this season of Lent as we prepare for ministry to the world. Renew our hearts, strengthen our resolve, equip our minds and challenge our spirits. – Lord, have mercy…

For our careless attitude towards the mission and ministry of your Bride. – Lord, have mercy…

For praying without thinking, sitting without engaging, singing without worshipping, and attending without being truly present. – Lord, have mercy…

The World

Mighty God, as we cleanse our hearts, so renew our minds to our mission in the world. May our lives henceforth be to your glory and our hours be spent upon your purposes. Forgive the poverty of our love towards the broken, our compassion towards the lost and our giving towards the poor. – Lord, have mercy…

For immersing ourselves in this world rather than immersing ourselves in your Word, and in so doing making our witness of none effect. – Lord, have mercy…

For failing to follow your command and “Go, into all the world” and for expecting the world to come to us. – Lord, have mercy…

THE LORD’SPRAYER

Reader: And so we pray…

All:Our Father in heaven,Holy is Your Name.Your Kingdom come.Your will be done,On earth as it is in heaven.Give us this day our daily bread;And forgive us our trespasses,As we forgive those who trespass against us.And lead us not into temptation,But deliver us from evil.For yours is the kingdom,The power, and the glory,Forever and ever. Amen.

GOSPEL READING

John 10:1-21

I Am the Good Shepherd

“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber.But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.

So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again.No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

There was again a division among the Jews because of these words.Many of them said, “He has a demon, and is insane; why listen to him?”Others said, “These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

Reader:The Word of the Lord.All: Thanks be to God.

Pause for Reflection…

READING: THE WAY OF CHRIST(Optional)

Appreciating that without deep communion with God the life of the Spirit is impossible, I make time to encounter God daily through prayer, worship, the Scriptures and the development of a regular devotional rhythm. As a follower of the Way of Prayer, I will learn the internal disciplines necessary to hear from God and live deeply in His presence.

All:This is The Way of Prayer: The Principle of Daily Fellowship with God.

Pause for Reflection…

THE APOSTLES CREED

Reader: And so we make our declaration of faith…

All:We believe in God the Father, Almighty,Maker of heaven and earth:And in Jesus Christ his only Son our Lord,Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,Born of the Virgin Mary,Suffered under Pontius Pilate,Was crucified, dead, and buried:He descended into the grave;The third day he rose again from the dead;He ascended into heaven,And sits on the right hand of God the Father Almighty;From there he shall come to judge the living and the dead.We believe in the Holy Spirit;The Holy Worldwide Church;The Communion of Saints;The Forgiveness of sins;The Resurrection of the body,And the Life everlasting. Amen.

COLLECT

Reader:(Either this or an alternative closing prayer may be said.)

Lord, who for our sake fasted forty days and forty nights:
Give us grace to follow your example,
That our sinful nature, being subdued by the Spirit,
And mortified by the discipline of self-denial,
May be transformed into the nature of Christ.
Who lives and reigns with you,
In the unity of the Holy Spirit,
One God, now and forever. Amen

BLESSING

Reader:(When praying in community, this or a similar blessing may be used)

And may your tears of penitence become songs of joy,
Your sorrow for sin become anthems of happiness
And your night of trouble become a new morning of hope. Amen